SanAndreasX on 21 July 2020
I did my favorite games of the year, but I also did honorable mentions as well. I guess that's cheating, but there were some years where too many great games would have gone overlooked.
Weirdly, my runners-up list probably looks more interesting, since I'm a fan of games by series. There's an awful lot of Zelda in my GOTY lists, for example.
| Year | Game of the Year | Honorable Mentions |
| 1978 | Space Invaders | |
| 1979 | Bee Wary | Dunjonquest: The Temple of Apshai, Star Raiders |
| 1980 | Pac-Man | Berzerk, Zork |
| 1981 | Donkey Kong | Ms. Pac-Man, Frogger, Scramble, Defender |
| 1982 | Joust | Pengo, Pitfall, Kangaroo, Dig-Dug, Mr. Do! |
| 1983 | Mario Bros | Ultima III: Exodus, Spy Hunter, Archon |
| 1984 | Boulder Dash | Pitfall II, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy |
| 1985 | Super Mario Bros | Ultima IV: Quest of the Avatar |
| 1986 | Starflight | Rampage |
| 1987 | The Legend of Zelda | Metroid, Kid Icarus, Castlevania, Wizards and Warriors |
| 1988 | Zelda II: The Adventure of Link | Bionic Commando (NES), Ultima V: Warriors of Destiny |
| 1989 | Super Mario Land | Tetris (GB), Faxanadu, Dragon Quest, SimCity |
| 1990 | Super Mario Bros 3 | Final Fantasy, Ultima VI: The False Prophet |
| 1991 | Final Fantasy IV | Super Mario World, Sonic the Hedgehog |
| 1992 | The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past | Street Fighter II |
| 1993 | The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening | Secret of Mana, |
| 1994 | Super Metroid | Final Fantasy VI, Mortal Kombat II (SNES) |
| 1995 | Chrono Trigger | Mortal Kombat 3, Super Mario World II: Yoshi's Island |
| 1996 | Super Mario 64 | Super Mario RPG, Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire |
| 1997 | Final Fantasy VII | Mario Kart 64, Star Fox 64, Goldeneye |
| 1998 | The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time | Xenogears, Resident Evil 2, Parasite Eve, Pokemon Red/Blue |
| 1999 | Lunar: Silver Star Story Complete | Final Fantasy VIII, Harvest Moon 64, SoulCalibur (DC) |
| 2000 | Final Fantasy IX | The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask, Lunar 2: Eternal Blue Complete, Valkyrie Profile |
| 2001 | Final Fantasy X | Grand Theft Auto III, Devil May Cry, Dragon Quest VII |
| 2002 | Metroid Prime | Virtua Fighter 4 (PS2), Kingdom Hearts |
| 2003 | The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker | Soulcalibur II (GC), Final Fantasy Tactics Advance, Xenosaga Episode I |
| 2004 | Tales of Symphonia | Harvest Moon: A Wonderful Life, Metroid Prime 2, Baten Kaitos |
| 2005 | Dragon Quest VIII | Resident Evil 4, Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance, Mario Kart DS |
| 2006 | The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess | Final Fantasy XII, Okami, Wii Sports |
| 2007 | Virtua Fighter 5 Online | Super Mario Galaxy, Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn, Pokemon Diamond/Pearl |
| 2008 | Valkyria Chronicles | Super Smash Bros Brawl, Fallout 3, Tales of Vesperia, Lost Odyssey |
| 2009 | Demon's Souls | Punch-Out!!, Dragon Quest V (DS) |
| 2010 | Fallout: New Vegas | Valkyria Chronicles II, Yakuza 3, Bayonetta, Sakura Wars |
| 2011 | The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword | Mortal Kombat 9, Catherine, Dark Souls |
| 2012 | Xenoblade Chronicles | Tales of Graces f, The Last Story, XCOM: Enemy Unknown |
| 2013 | Ni no Kuni | The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds, Tales of Xillia, Fire Emblem: Awakening |
| 2014 | Bayonetta 2 | Bravely Default, Mario Kart 8 |
| 2015 | Super Mario Maker | The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel, Final Fantasy Type-0 |
| 2016 | Final Fantasy XV | Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE, Doom, Yakuza 6 |
| 2017 | The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild | Super Mario Odyssey, Xenoblade Chronicles 2, Persona 5 |
| 2018 | Valkyria Chronicles 4 | Super Smash Bros Ultimate, Octopath Traveler, Ni no Kuni 2 |
| 2019 | Dragon Quest XI S (NS) | Fire Emblem: Three Houses, Astral Chain, Pokemon Sword/Shield |
| 2020 (So Far) | Animal Crossing: New Horizons | Sakura Wars |
